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  “Crap,” was all Peter could get out when the Tyrannosaurus bolted out of the jungle and descended on Castillo. The driver managed to raise his rifle and get off a single shot before he was snatched up in its jaws. He cried out as foot-long teeth pierced his camo and body armor like a hot knife through butter.

  “Run!” shouted Collins.

  The group dashed for the river as the T. rex chomped on the poor mercenary, his blood dripping from its jaws as it swallowed the pieces of meat. Peter and Tracey dove in first. He heard splashes behind him, but he didn’t dare look as he pumped his arms and legs furiously, swimming for the other side. Rather, he kept his eyes on the river for large shadows.

  As he and Tracey swam with all their might, the river carried them southbound, so their trajectory was more of a diagonal. Past the halfway mark across, Peter heard the T. rex roar behind him, but he was fairly certain it wouldn’t cross. He kept one eye on the opposite river bank and one on the water below, praying there wasn’t a Spinosaurus lurking about.

  When he reached the opposite side with Tracey, they both stood up and slogged their way, splashing in the shallows until they reached the other side. They stopped, panting, catching their breath as the others joined them on the river bank.

  Peter saw the T. rex pacing back and forth on the other side, furious they eluded it. It roared a couple of times and stomped off, disappearing back into the jungle. “That was close.”

  “Castillo was a good man,” said Collins. “He didn’t deserve to go out like that.”

  Peter shook his head, agreeing. “No one does.”

  Nielsen placed a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “Do you sense anything around here? Any others?”

  Peter closed his eyes and reached out with his senses, igniting the orbs in his chest. After a minute, he opened his eyes again. “Nope. The coast is clear for now.”

  “Can you keep that up as we follow the river back north?” asked Nielsen.

  “He’s not some kind of machine,” snapped Tracey.

  “I never said he was,” said Nielsen. “In fact, he’s some kind of magic.”

  “The answer is ‘no.’ I can’t,” said Peter. “It has to be a conscious effort. I can make periodic checks, but I have to stop and concentrate. It might slow us down.”

  “Better safe than sorry,” said Collins. “Just let us know when you’re going to do it, and we’ll stop in as safe a place as possible.”

  Peter nodded. Just like the tabletop role-playing games. Searching for danger as he went, but each check would constitute a turn.

  They stuck close to the river, making their way back to base camp. Collins tried his radio every so often, but to no avail. The island was interfering. The sun rose high in the sky, and at midday Collins unshouldered his pack. “We have to eat and hydrate.”

  The others slowed down and followed suit, grabbing granola bars and bottled water from their packs. Wrappers crinkled and the group ate, taking swigs of water between bites.

  “I have to take a leak,” said Peter.

  “That’s not a bad idea,” said Nielsen.

  Tracey looked down as she rubbed her stomach with her right hand. “I have to…do something else.”

  “We stick together,” said Collins.

  “There’s no way I’m doing that in front of you,” said Tracey, grimacing at her stomach upset.

  “I don’t want you wandering off,” demanded Collins. “Who knows what’s out there?”

  “Sounds like it’s time for one of my checks,” said Peter. He closed his eyes and reached out all around them. He felt the plants around them, birds in the trees, several monkeys, but no clear and imminent threats. “The coast is clear right now.”

  Collins nodded. “Okay, let’s make it quick.”

  They each split up, as privacy was apparently still important, even on an island in another dimension. Peter wandered off away from the river. He heard Collins warn Tracey not to go too far. He didn’t hear her response, but he could’ve imagined it. He would’ve gone with her, but not for what she was about to do. A tinkle was one thing. Dropping the kids off at the pool was another.

  He picked a good spot and unzipped his fly. He took a look around, checking over his shoulder. Satisfied he was alone, he relieved himself. It felt good to empty his bladder. Just moments ago, he was too terrified to know he had to urinate, so this small moment came as a welcome relief. As he zipped back up, he was startled by a rustling in the bushes off to his left. He meant to close his eyes and reach out with his senses, but he didn’t get the chance.

  Six lizard men emerged from the vegetation, five of them holding spears. One held an orb in his hands.

  Oh crap, thought Peter. He wondered how they evaded his detection and if they’d searched for him after his narrow escape down river. He put his hands up, surrendering, as he was unarmed. He cursed himself for not asking for a weapon back in the armored truck.

  He heard the voices of his friends chattering behind him. Nielsen told everyone to hurry up. Tracey shouted something back. Peter weighed his options. He could either shout for help, but his friends would have to face off against six lizard men, five of them armed. Or, he could let the lizard men take him and spare the others being taken captive or worse. Only Collins was armed. With an automatic rifle, he stood a fair chance.

  The lizard man with the orb flared his dewlap and approached Peter, holding out the orb. He knew this meant it wanted to communicate. The others stood there, holding their spears, but otherwise posing no immediate threat. Peter reached out and palmed the orb.

  A familiar wordless voice entered his mind. ‘I see you are unharmed.’ It was the one he’d encountered underground. The one who showed him the visions of their history.

  ‘No thanks to you. You can have me. Leave the others alone.’

  ‘If that is what you wish.’

  ‘What do you want?’

  The lizard man swallowed several times, his tongue flittering out between his lips. ‘I need your help.’

  Peter didn’t expect this response. ‘My help? You need my help?’

  ‘My people are warlike, bold, and equally foolish.’

  Peter didn’t know what to say to that. ‘You speak as if you’re not including yourself with them.’

  The lizard man waved a clawed hand as it spoke. ‘Unfortunately, I share their grim fate if I do not intercede.’

  Tracey came bounding into Peter’s small clearing, laughing to herself. “Jesus, Peter, how long does it take to…” Her eyes went wide when she saw the lizard men, “…drain the lizard.”

  The lizard men bobbed their heads, extending their dewlaps at full mast. A few wielded their spears, pointing them at Tracey.

  She screamed, but Peter waved his right hand at her while keeping the other on the sphere. “Tracey, wait.”

  She looked at Peter, his hands on the orb, confused. “What’s going on here?”

  Collins and Nielsen burst into the clearing.

  “Oh my God,” gasped Nielsen, jaw hanging open.

  Collins raised his rifle, training it on the lizard men. “Dr. Albanese, are you okay?”

  The lizard men with the spears hissed at them, waving their sharpened spear tips. One produced a bolus and was twirling it in the air above its head.

  The lizard man holding the orb made strange guttural sounds at the others. Because Peter’s hands were still on the orb, he caught the order—Now.

  Two of the lizard men attacked the other three. The three attacked appeared just as surprised as everyone else. Collins held his fire, appearing unsure of what to target. One victim took a spear to the chest and went down immediately. The remaining two victims fought back. However, one took a spear to the side and had its throat ripped out by a clawed hand. The remaining victim killed one of the traitors but was finished off by the other one.

  Collins trained his weapon on the one survivor. “Will somebody tell me what the hell is going on?”

  ‘Grux will not harm you,’ said the l
izard man holding the orb to Peter.

  “Wait,” said Peter.

  “Tell me what’s going on,” demanded Collins.

  “Why did they attack each other?” asked Nielsen.

  ‘Why did your men turn on themselves?’ asked Peter.

  ‘Grux and Drok are among those sympathetic to my cause. Drok was a good man. Pity he had to die.’

  ‘What cause is that?’

  ‘The cause of all of us on the island, including the Uminami.’

  Peter wondered at the reference, but soon realized he meant the Umazoans.

  The lizard man cocked its head sideways. ‘You are not like the other Uminami.’

  ‘And you are not like the other lizard men,’ retorted Peter.

  ‘That is because I am not. My name is Ghenga. I am one of the higher evolved of what you call the lizard men. We are the Zehhaki. My people are in grave danger.’

  ‘Why should I care about your people when they attack mine? I woke you from extinction, and you choose to hurt my friends.’

  Collins stepped forward, training his gun on Grux. Grux looked to Ghenga, who croaked something to him. Grux bowed and laid his spear on the ground.

  “These aren’t like the others,” said Peter over his shoulder.

  “What do they want?” asked Tracey.

  “Hold on,” said Peter. “I’m trying to find out.”

  “How?” asked Collins.

  “He’s communicating with him somehow,” said Tracey, “using the orb.”

  “Remarkable,” gasped Nielsen, watching with great interest.

  ‘Unfortunately, it is Zehhaki nature to wage war and pillage. It is what led to our extinction so many cycles ago. And now, given a second chance, it looks as if they are going to repeat the same mistakes again. If left unchecked, they will destroy the balance in this place. Without a natural predator, they will destroy the entire food chain.’

  Peter cursed himself. He hadn’t intended to awaken them. His carelessness was going to bring down a whole ecosystem. ‘What can we do about it?’

  ‘You,’ said Ghenga. ‘You possess the power of the two orbs. You possess dominion over life and death.’

  ‘I could send you all back into extinction using the death orb.’

  ‘That is one option…’

  Peter felt Ghenga rummaging around his mind, searching through memories…recent memories. ‘You do not yet know how to wield the death orb, but you have received an offer to learn.’

  ‘What was that thing that offered to teach me?’ asked Peter.

  ‘That is Nazimaa. She is a dangerous presence in our land, a demon spirit of a common enemy of all life. She has dominion over sickness and healing, water, and darkness. She is entombed, sleeping…waiting to be reawakened in bodily form.’

  ‘Okay, so she’s someone to stay away from.’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘I’ve pretty much gathered that. So, if I can’t send the Zehhaki back into extinction, what is my other option?’

  ‘There is another race that, if awoken, can bring balance.’

  ‘The ape men,’ said Peter.

  ‘You must go to the temple of the Simian King and awaken them from their cycles-long slumber. Only then will the Zehhaki be counter-balanced.’

  Peter didn’t like this prospect. He had awoken one race and unleashed war and death upon the rest of the island. Was awakening yet another race the answer? What would they be like? ‘Is the other race—the Simians—good?’

  ‘Good?’

  ‘Will they hurt life?’

  ‘They will wage war with the Zehhaki. It is in their nature.’

  ‘So, they are good.’

  ‘There is no good,’ said Ghenga. ‘There is no evil. We each act according to our nature. The Zehhaki are not good or evil. Some wage war, and others are charged with using thought and strategy—both for the survival of the race.’

  ‘Why should I do this? Why should I trust what you say? Why don’t I just go to Nazimaa?’

  ‘I have not threatened you in any way. I come to you offering balance…a chance for your people.’

  Peter removed his hands from the orb. He didn’t want Ghenga to have access to his thoughts at this moment. Balance? A chance? The Umazoa weren’t even his people, but Ghenga didn’t know that. Yet, he felt some responsibility for them. He even, in some twisted way, felt some responsibility towards the Zehhaki. Some deity he turned out to be. He woke an ancient race, and his children were the scourge of the island.

  Tracey appeared by his side. “What is it, Peter?”

  Peter held up a hand. “Hold on a second.” He placed his hands back on the orb, re-establishing the connection. ‘What if I refuse to get involved?’

  Ghenga’s dewlap twitched. ‘You are already involved. The other Zehhaki are searching for you. They know what you saw. They know I showed you historical records of the Simians. They know what I want to happen, for the good of the race. The leadership disagrees.’

  ‘You didn’t answer my question. Why should I help you?’

  ‘Because the others have your friends, the hunter and your mate.’

  ‘Jason and Mary?’

  ‘They will use them to get to you. To stop you before you awaken the Simian race.’

  Peter shook his head. ‘Go to them. Tell them I won’t do it.’ However, he knew that wouldn’t work. The Zehhaki wouldn’t respond to negotiations. That much was abundantly clear. ‘What about the others? I’m sure there are others that believe as you do.’

  ‘There are, but they are in the minority.’

  ‘What do you care? Extinction would take generations. You wouldn’t live to see it.’

  Ghenga swept his head around, repeatedly pumping his dewlap as he swallowed hard. It was a major emotional response. ‘The Zehhaki were once a great people. The large reptiles, the ones you call dinosaurs, are the descendants of the Zehhaki. They are what we devolved into. We are their progenitors. I do not wish that for my ancestors.’

  Peter thought he sensed a sentiment like pensive nostalgia. As Peter felt responsibility towards the Umazoa and even the Zehhaki, Ghenga felt the same responsibility towards his people.

  Peter released the orb. He had much to think about.

  Tracey squeezed his arm. “What is it? Is everything okay?”

  Nielsen looked astounded. “You spoke with him, didn’t you? What did he say?”

  “More importantly, is he friend or foe?” asked Collins.

  Peter looked at each of them. “Okay, you want to know? You’re not going to believe this…”

  Chapter 7

  Jason followed the lizard men’s tracks along the riverbank, wondering if what he’d experienced was some kind of dream. He remembered being sick, Mary being taken away, and feeling totally powerless to do anything about it. He remembered talking to someone…was he really talking? The whole exchange was lost in a fog inside his mind.

  He stopped every so often, squatting and examining the tracks. The lizard men’s tracks started out numerous; Jason estimated thirty or so sets. However, as he progressed down the riverbank, keeping a careful eye out for predators, he noticed some veering off to the right and into the jungle, and others veering off into the river.

  The ones leading into the river grew deeper and deeper, with the final sets of prints for each individual pressing down a few to several inches into the soft silt. This indicated to Jason that they crouched and dove into the river. Those things could swim.

  As he squatted, examining the prints, he thought he caught something downriver in the corner of his eye. When he looked up, he saw a head bobbing in the current.

  “Help! Jason, help me!”

  He squinted, trying to see who it was. It was Susan. “Susan, swim towards me. I’ve got you.”

  She doggy paddled to the right as the river carried her toward him. Jason stepped into the water, waist-deep. “That’s it, Susan. Swim to me.”

  But she was coming too fast. Within seconds she was swept past him
. He reached out for her, but she was still too far out. Jason ran back up onto the riverbank and ran alongside the river. He was able to catch up to her and keep pace. The current wasn’t exactly rapids, but it was too strong for her to fight it. “Swim to the side,” he called out. “Swim to me. I’ll get you.”

  “I can’t,” she cried. “It’s too strong.” She dipped below the surface for a moment, spitting up water upon resurfacing. Jason saw several splashes around her. She looked down into the water, screeching. “Something’s grabbing…” She slipped under again.

  Jason sprinted ahead of where she went under and ran into the water, splashing loudly. He unsheathed his massive hunting knife and dove under the water. He saw flashes of green writhing about and Susan kicking and waving her arms, trying to escape.

  Jason kicked his way over to the underwater tumult and reached for one of Susan’s feet. Her right foot had a three-clawed hand wrapped around it. He lashed out with his blade, slashing at it until her foot was shrouded in a cloud of crimson. He pulled at her ankle, and it was free.

  Running out of air, he worked his way up her body, grabbed her waist, and pulled upward, kicking his legs. She rose with him, the both of them breaching the surface, gasping for air. Something pulled at his feet as Susan screamed, and they were both pulled under again. Jason curled up, bringing his hands closer to his feet, and he slashed at the arm grabbing his ankle. The lizard man recoiled, releasing him. He turned to Susan and pulled his way around her body towards her feet. A spear thrust up at him, narrowly missing his side.

  He slashed at the two lizard men, desperate to grab either of them and pull them down. He dodged a couple of spear thrusts as they recoiled from his slashing. Jason shoved Susan to the surface. He burst up into the air, took a deep breath, and dove back down.

  As he kicked, propelling himself down, the other two lizard men swam up to meet him. They each thrust a spear at him. He deflected one with his knife and was grazed by the other just under his ribs. Blood trickled out of his wound in a cloud. As they grappled, the cloud expanded, obscuring their vision. Jason reached out and grabbed a scaled wrist. He pulled himself close and knifed the surprised lizard man in the neck.